Dust Collection opinions needed on Oneida -or- Grizzly portables

[Jeff Hamilton Jr.]

(I posted this a few days ago in "General woodworking" got some views, but no responses. Thought I'd give this category a shot!)

I am in the process of updating/upgrading my DC "system" which consists of an 8-yr old Penn State 1.5hp single stage w/ Wynn filter and 10ft 5" flex hose that I move from machine-to-machine.

I have some larger equip, Euro combo machine and 16" bandsaw, along with ROS's, routers and the other usual suspects.

Ive thought of a larger cyclone and permanent 6" ducting a'la Bill Pentz advice, but I'm just a hobbyist and time is also at a premium. Some of the new, portable cyclones seem to have improved such that they might be an acceptable answer for me.

I'm most interested in the 2 & 3 hp portable gorillas, they have HEPA filters and seem to have high enough CFM's to be able to collect the "fines." The smaller, 1.5 hp Oneida and Grizzly CFM #'s seem a bit on the low side such that I'd worry that it's not enough to pull the fines.

I don't have any problem moving the hose to the machine I'm using at the time and I NEVER use two at once (though I'd truly like to figure out the age-old conundrum of being in two places at once!).

Id really appreciate some input from those of you that have any experience with these machines, or, those who feel I should just bite the time-bullet of installing permanent.

Thanks!

[Erich Weidner]

I'm on the DC quest myself, but after all the reading I'm gravitating towards the Oneida Smart Portable. There was a review of the 2hp model in American Woodworker (Issue 151 as I recall), there is a chart of the fan curves they measured in their online extras.
The mini gorilla looked cool, but it maxes out at about 600cfm, which consensus seems to be is far too low (even before accounting for friction losses).

I'm still on the fence as to 2hp vs 3hp, and would love to find out if anyone feels the "smart" version is worth the extra ~$1,000.
It seems like it is about 5db louder than the other portables, and though I *really* don't want the noise, (and don't have a means of remote mounting or walling it up as my shop is my attached two car garage and must always pull double duty) I'm at the point where I want to do what I can to protect my health while working. (As I recall 10db increase is perceptibly a doubling of sound), so 5db is significant.

[Jeff Hamilton Jr.]

Pushing this up for the weekend in the hope that someone has some experience with the portables ... Thanks!

[Clint Olver]

Jeff, I hate to be the one to say it, but bite the bullet. I'm in the process of biting the bullet right now, so I understand feeling of tackling the project, but it is going to be worth it. 6" PVC to everything, blast gates, cyclone, you'll be amazed - and you won't regret it. Otherwise, I'd just stick with what you've got.

C

[Paul McGaha]

Jeff,

I have a 2 HP Oneida Dust Gorilla myself. Mine was sized by Oneida based on the tools that I have and the size of my shop and the fact that I'm a hobbyist and only 1 tool in the shop will be running at one time.

While I'm happy with the performance of the system, It does pull the dust out of the tools and the air quality in the shop is good per my Dylos meter. If I had to do it again I would get at least a 3 HP machine and maybe a 5 HP as the cost is not that much more. I installed mine in 2009. At that time a 3 HP collector was only $100 more than the 2 HP. A 5 HP machine was only $300 more than a 2 HP machine. Not a lot of money for markedly more CFM.

In my installation the dust collector was about half of the price of the finished system. The duct, fittings, blast gates, hose, air filter meter, collection bin full strobe, upgrade the collection bin, bags for the collection bin. It all adds up.

PHM

[Nelson Howe]

Can't help you with the portables, but I just upgraded from a 20 year old 2hp Reliant with Wynn filter to a Clearvue 5hp. It's true that the cyclone is half or less of the total cost once you add up pvc, fittings, blast gates, and hose. And it took some time to install and build the closet enclosure. But I have to say that my shop really is much cleaner as a result. It is definitely liberating to not have to move a hose from machine to machine. I had my other collector plumbed up to each machine as well, but it didn't have the suction to do the job right. Now I finally have a setup that works. It's great. But I would warn you that even with my cyclone in a sound-dampened closet, it's still loud. It's not the cyclone itself, so much as the airflow. When the gates are closed, it's pretty quiet. But when you open a gate, all that rushing air makes a lot of noise. I can't say from personal experience, but I would tend to be very skeptical of manufacturer's claims about dbs and cfms.

Nelson

[David Kumm]

Airflow makes noise so the DB count is kind of irrelevant. More cfm, more noise. You really can't avoid that much. As for the smart, while the idea is neat, I would spend the $1000 on good pipe and 2.5 radius fittings and have a permanent well designed system. I get the manual version of the smart by running a three phase motor on a vfd but find I use one speed most of the time. A good system needs ear plugs just as all machines do. As my shop and machines grew I was forced to change my DC. I'm on my third and final. I should have gone from the single bagger to the 5 hp cyclone and saved time and money. Not advocating the 5 hp for all as I run a large shop with large machines but am advocating the proper size for what you have and intend to have. I would not install a cyclone with less than a 3 hp 14" fan. Dave

[Jeff Hamilton Jr.]

Thanks for the advice & experiences guys. It is very helpful. Jeff